Miriam Against Drinking
by TwilightSparkle3562
Summary: In this sequel to "Miriam Gets a Permanent Job," Miriam is enjoying life in the Beeper Emporium until one night when she goes out drinking and gets into an auto accident, killing one person. Now, serving a sentence of thirty days in a Rehab Center, Miriam must face the demons that plague her mind and purge them forever.
1. A Successful Businesswoman

Disclaimer: I do not own "Hey Arnold," or its characters. They are property of Nickelodeon and Viacom Entertainment.

"Miriam Against Drinking"

By TwilightSparkle3562

Chapter 1

"A Successful Businesswoman"

Easter Sunday: a day that our lord and savior was reborn after he was arrested, scourged and finally crucified to save us all from Satan's power when we had gone astray. As I sit here in church praying on this holy of holy days, I think back to all those days where I was at the lowest moment of my life. As many of you have known, I, Miriam Pataki, had to battle an enemy so evil for many years that I had to understand that my demons had to be fought.

Of course, one of those demons was my despicable father-in-law, Joseph Pataki and another was my husband, Bob Pataki. Bob has since freed himself from the demons that plagued his mind and now, after I was kidnapped and humiliated by three of his former employees, has become more supportive of me and what I chose to do.

But, we all have demons that continue to stay with us for a very long time and that is where my story begins. It all started on Ash Wednesday, when I was just getting used to my new role as Vice President of Bob's beeper emporium. It had been a stressful week for me as I was dealing with idiot customers who wanted a set of beepers out a few days before we had a chance to finish them.

"You mean that you are not going to get those beepers out early?" asked a customer angrily over the phone. "Look, lady, I spoke to your husband and he said that he would get them out early."

I wasn't going to stand for this and I clearly remembered Bob saying that the beepers that these people wanted, was going to be out when we finished making them.

"Listen to me," I replied, trying to sound stern, but polite. "Bob never said that he would get them out early. We are running a business and we play by the rules. I would much rather have a decent product out on the market than one that is not going to work all the time."

"Are you trying to tell me how to be patient?" retorted the customer. "Just for that, I'd like to come over there and give you a piece of my mind or two."

"Try me," I snapped and I threw the phone back down on the receiver, cutting off the ignorant customer on the other line. I never lost my temper in the workplace, but sometimes, there were people who wanted to push my buttons and this was definitely one of them.

Just then, I heard a knock at the door and I allowed the person to enter and it turned out to be nothing than my friend and colleague, Anita Rogers, who had a stack of papers in her hand.

"Hey, Miriam," she said, walking into the office. "Your husband wanted me to give these to you before you headed home tonight."

As she handed me the stack of papers, Anita could see that there was something indeed wrong with me and was curious to know why. We may have been close friends for a short time from our days when she was my boss at Wal-Mart, but it seemed that we were getting to know each other more and more.

"Miriam, it looks like something is bothering you," she said, looking down at me. "Has it been a rough day?"

I was silent for a minute and wondered whether I should tell Anita the truth.

"You can say that," I replied, placing my feet on the top of my desk, as I tried to recline and stretch out my back. "Some customer wanted to get our beepers into our story ahead of our completion date. I tried to reason with him, but it was no use."

"So did the customers at Wal-Mart," chuckled Anita. "I'm pretty sure you could remember those times."

"I'm used to it," I said, taking a heavy sigh. "I'm used to being yelled at all the time. Ever since I was kidnapped by those thugs of his, I have tried to tell myself to be strong and willing to endure whatever brunt comes my way."

Anita smiled at me, knowing how far I had come since starting at Wal-Mart. Of course, working here while Bob was injured had made me understand the value that I possess within me now.

"I was also wondering if you wanted to swing by the bar near here and get a bite to eat," asked Anita.

"Sure," I said. "I just have to get these orders out to a few more customers and I will meet you there. How about 7:00 when I get out of here?"

"Sounds fine with me," Anita replied and she left my office. Once the door was closed, I took my feet off of my desk and pulled down on one of the drawers. I used to keep a bottle of wine inside for when I got stressed and this was another day where I needed it the most. I also used to hide the fact that I was a lover of wine, although everyone knew of the smoothies I would always consume when I was unemployed.

A few hours later, I finished the orders and closed up the emporium for the night, as I started to feel the effects of the wine that I had consumed. Walking past several employees, I tried to cloud up the fact that I had just drunk the wine.

"You all right, Miriam?" asked an employee, worriedly. "You look sick."

"I'm fine," I replied, feeling slightly drunk. "Just get those orders done before you go home. See you in the morning."

I then left the worried employees behind and made my way to my car that was in the parking lot, in the reserved spots for me and Bob. So, still feeling tipsy, I drove off to the bar where I would meet Anita.

Of course, a slight turn of events would change my life forever and would start my own temptation against the devil…


	2. The Accident

Chapter 2

"The Accident"

It was just after 7:00pm that I arrived at the bar where I met Anita. At that point, the wine was starting to affect me greatly and over the course of the night, I kept asking for more and more red wine to fill my system. This made Anita very worried for my safety and it was at that moment that she had to say something.

"Look, Miriam," she said worriedly as I placed another glass down. "You have been drinking all night. Why don't I take you home?"

"Why should you?" I asked drunkenly, as I undid the bun in my hair. "I'll be fine, I've never gotten into an accident yet."

Of course, that wasn't true. I have been in accidents before and I lost my license several times because of it. However, you must understand that I was under the influence and that I couldn't think properly.

"Your friend has a point," said the server, taking the glass of wine away from me. "Why don't you have her take you home? You are not safe behind the wheel in your condition."

All I did was throw the card at the server and she nervously took it away from me. Anita tried to reason with me, but I was not going to listen in any way. It was Ash Wednesday after all, and I was already committing a cardinal sin against God. The time between Ash Wednesday and Easter Sunday is called Lent and it required for every Catholic of all ages to give up something for that period of time.

Although I didn't know it at the time, I beginning to realize that maybe I should have given up drinking. Not just for Lent, but permanently. But, let's not get ahead of ourselves and just focus on what was at hand.

"Seriously, Miriam," pleaded Anita as I staggered onto my feet. "You can't drive while you're drunk. Just get in my car and…"

"Shut up, girlfriend," I interrupted getting into my car. "I don't need you to tell me how to drive. I learned that when I was sixteen, girlfriend. Good night."

I slammed the door in Anita's face and pulled out sharply. Even as I drove off, still under the influence, Anita could see that she was greatly worried and decided to follow me as a light snow stared to fall.

"I am not going to let her off that easily," Anita thought as she started to follow me.

Meanwhile, I continued my slow drive through the streets, nearly falling asleep as my foot went down and down more on the gas pedal. In my clouded mind, I thought that I was going the normal speed, but I was wrong. My car kept going and going well past the speed limit which was at 15 mph, but I was going more towards 30 mph.

"I… got… to… get… home," I whispered to myself as I was now starting to fall asleep behind the wheel. Behind me, Anita was starting to see that I was beginning to go fast and knew she had to do something. Trying to reach me, she reached into her purse and tried to call the police station.

"911, emergency," said the dispatcher. "Please state your emergency."

"All right," began Anita, not letting her eyes off of the car. "My friend had too much to drink and is now going fast on Benefit Street. I need a nearby officer to pull her over. Can you help me?"

"We have an officer not too far from where you are," replied the dispatcher. "We will notify him at once."

But just before Anita could say another word, she saw my car miss a turn and head into an alleyway. Suddenly, I burst through a wooden fence and the only thing that I remember at that moment, was the sound of a piercing scream followed by the sounds of crashing. Racing as fast as she could, Anita arrived at the scene and she saw that my car had crashed into the side of a brick house on the next street.

"Miriam!" Anita screamed as she ran over to my destroyed car. I could remember the sounds of crashing, but I didn't remember the airbag being deployed from the steering wheel. Anita struggled to get the door open, but she managed to use her strength to get it open. She then pulled me out of the car as the flashes of red and blue lights raced over to where we were.

"I told you that you should have come home with me," Anita cried, trying to get through to my drunken self. "What is the matter with you?"

But, just then, she saw something red on her feet and walked over to see what appeared to be a hand underneath my car with blood flowing from it. Anita was shocked to see what had happened and was about to scream bloody murder at me when an officer came over.

"Are you the driver?" asked the officer.

"So what if I am?" I replied, huffily. "There are many like me out on the roads, stranger."

The officer then took a breathalyzer from his holster and placed it in my mouth. After a moment, he pulled out and saw that I was over the legal limit in our city. This was me breaking the law, although I was drunk at the time.

"Put your hands on the car, ma'am," he said and had me spread my legs open as he frisked me down.

"You're not trying to stick your hands in my pants?" I said, drunkenly. Normally I wore my cranberry suit with a skirt, but because it was cold, I wore pants. After a few moments, he placed my hands behind my back and I heard the faint sound of clicking in the area where my hands were behind my back.

"You're under arrest for vehicular homicide," said the cop and read me my rights as I was placed in the police cruiser as more rescue vehicles came to the scene.

All Anita could do was watch helplessly as I was carted off to the police station where the beginning of my realization was about to begin.


	3. Facing the Judge

Chapter 3

"Facing the Judge"

Because I was so drunk and that my mind was clouded, I didn't realize where I was and it wasn't until a man in a dark suit walked into the jail cell followed by a police officer carrying what appeared to be a fresh change of clothes. All I wanted at that point was to have Bob, Helga or even Father Lawrence come as well. I was alone and there was nothing that I could do about it.

"Miriam," said the dark suited man as he walked into my cell. "I'm William Woodson, your court appointed attorney. You are being charged with driving under the influence and vehicular homicide."

I was shocked to hear such a thing coming from the mouth of an attorney. I was taught to never kill a fellow human being from a very young age. This made me feel low and ashamed of what I had just heard.

"I can't believe what I am hearing," I gasped. "How could I…How could I…?"

"There was a young woman that was trapped underneath the front of your car," said Woodson. "She was only a preteen, no much older than your daughter, Helga."

"What can I do?" I asked worriedly, getting up and pacing around the cell. "I have to face her family. I have to atone for my actions. I…"

But, Woodson interrupted me and I returned to my spot next to him.

"I spoke to the judge this morning," he said. "It was his recommendation that you plead Guilty to what you have done and if you do that, then you'll be sent to a detox program at the hospital. But, it's entirely your call, Miriam."

I realized at that moment that something had to be done. All my life, I lived in the shadow of the smoothies I had always consumed and now, it appeared that they were taking over my mind, despite the fact that I had finally gotten myself in this position.

"And what happens if I don't take the offer, if you don't mind my asking?" I asked.

"Well, Miriam," sighed Woodson. "Then we would have to go to trial and you could be sentenced to a lengthily prison term or worse…even a life sentence. Is that what you are going for?"

The thought of being sent to prison for life made my spine tingle with fear. But, at the same time, accepting my consequences would make me realize that I do need help in combating the demons that control my mind.

"No," I replied firmly. "You are right, Mr. Woodson. I need help in combating the devil that forces me to do something like this."

"Very well, then," he replied, getting to his feet. "Your family has brought you a fresh suit to wear for your court appearance. It's in an hour and the guard will direct you to the prison shower."

So, Woodson left me alone and the guard led me to the prison shower which was an open shower for all to see me bathing. Fortunately, there were no other people inside the shower and I was strip off my dirty cranberry pantsuit and bathe in privacy. After bathing, I threw on my cranberry skirt suit and was led to a police cruiser that took me to the courthouse that was in Downtown.

Upon arrival, I was greeted by Woodson, Bob, Helga and the family of the person that I accidentally killed. I have to confess, seeing the family of the person that I had killed made me sick to my stomach and I wanted to just collapse and die out of guilt, but I couldn't and that I needed to go through with this.

"I'm sorry," I whispered to the mother, who was holding a picture of her daughter. "I hope you find it in your hearts to forgive me."

But, she didn't respond and only glared at me as the officers led me into the courtroom. I could understand why she didn't respond to me as her guilt was fresh on her face. However, once we got inside the courtroom, it was only me, Mr. Woodson and my immediate family that were present and once the judge entered, I was more than willing to get this over with.

"Miriam Pataki," said the judge, looking down at me. "How do you plead to the charges against you? Guilty or Not Guilty?"

I was silent for a minute as Mr. Woodson whispered in my ear to accept the deal and plead guilty. After a moment, I took in a heavy sigh and looked up at him with worried eyes.

"I wish to plead guilty, your honor," I replied and even though I couldn't see it, I heard Helga quietly crying in Bob's chest upon hearing me say those words. "I am a devout Catholic and I need to accept my actions that I have caused."

"Very well then, Mrs. Pataki," said the judge. "You wish to plead guilty to one count of vehicular homicide and one count of driving under the influence. It is to the nature of this court that you be sentenced to forty days in St. John hospital's detox program. Failure to attend the program will result in your guilty plea to be withdrawn and you will be forced to go to trial where you will face a possible life sentence for your crimes."

The judge then banged the gavel and two officers led me away from Mr. Woodson as I watched my husband and youngest daughter from the gallery. As I was being led away to the prison van to serve out my sentence, I mouthed "I love you," to them, knowing that I would see them again soon. But, I would have to do this not just for my own sake as well as the sake of my family, but also for the sake of the family whose daughter I had killed by my own stupid actions.

"I need to do this," I thought to myself as the van drove away from the courthouse and over to the hospital, where my sentence would soon be carried out.


	4. Starting My Sentence

Chapter 4

"Starting my Sentence"

Arriving at the hospital, I was led by the cops into the detox center as I looked around at all the other people who were here to combat their issues. Normally, those who went into detox voluntarily would be processed like any normal patient, but in my mind, I was sent here by the courts, I would be processed like a prisoner about to serve a prison sentence. Well, that was what was going through my mind supposedly, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.

Upon arrival, instead of being processed like a prisoner, I was led into a hospital room with two nurses standing in front of the bed that I was supposedly going to be sleeping in during my stay. I had the handcuffs removed and the officers walked away, leaving me alone with them. I was of course, very nervous at what was going to happen next, but I had to be brave at whatever was coming my way.

"What are you going to do to me?" I asked, nervously, to the nurses.

"It's going to be fine, Mrs. Pataki," the older one said. "We just need to do some processing before we can start your detox. First, we will need you to undress and placed your clothes in this box along with any jewelry or personal items. Then, you will put on the hospital gown that is on your bed."

The thought of undressing in front of the nurses instantly brought me back to the night I was kidnapped by Bob's three ex-employees where I was forced to do the very same thing. I felt a tear coming down my cheek and the other nurse took notice of it.

"Is everything all right, Mrs. Pataki?" asked the younger nurse. "If you want us to step out of the room…

"Yes," I replied, trying to hide the fact that I was afraid to undress in front of other people. "That would be great. It's just that, I was in a situation where I forced to undress in front of three evil men. Doing this would only bring me back memories of that time."

"We need you to understand that you are here so that we could help you," said the older nurse. "We will not hurt you in any way and if you wish to have privacy, then we will honor it. However, we do need to follow hospital protocol. If you want to, we can keep your suit stored until your discharge."

"That would be nice, thank you," I replied nervously. "It's my best outfit, you know."

"We will be waiting outside until you are finished," they said.

So, the nurses stepped out of the bedroom and I was left alone with only the hospital bed and all the other stuff for company. Taking in a heavy sigh, I began to remove my cranberry suit, trying to keep the memories of my captivity out of my mind. The sights of those three perverted men were still in my mind, no matter how hard I tried to keep them out of it.

I first slid off my cranberry high heels from my feet and then sat down on the edge of the bed and slowly pulled off my tan stockings off of my legs, throwing them both into the box. Next, I got back on my feet and slid off my cranberry suit jacket and then, slowly unzipped my cranberry skirt, throwing them both into the box. As I unbuttoned my white blouse and slid it off, I heard the sounds of knocking on my hospital door.

"Are you doing all right, Mrs. Pataki?" called the older nurse. "Let us know when we could come in."

"I'm fine," I cried as I slowly removed the white full slip I was wearing under my suit, tossing it into the box along with my bra and panties, leaving me completely exposed. "I'm almost done."

Finally, I removed the cranberry headband in my hair and took off my cranberry earrings, before hastily throwing on the hospital gown as I opened the door and allowed the nurses to reenter.

"All right, Miriam," the younger nurse said, picking up the box containing my clothes and undergarments. "Right now, we are going to do a couple of tests on you, just so we could understand your health."

So, they gave me a physical examination and also did a complete blood count, to make sure of how much my blood alcohol level was. Given the fact that I was a frequent drinker, I was slightly over the normal levels. After several more tests, I was left alone in my hospital bed with just the silence for company.

"So, here I am," I thought to myself as the sun began to set outside my window. "I am finally going to be confronting the demons that have plagued me for so many years. I'm like Jesus, to an extent. I mean, if he could fast for forty days in the desert, then why I can't I?"

As I laid down in my hospital bed, I had to realize that I can't let the devil's work try to change me. If I hadn't taken that plea, then he would have won over me. I can't let him win, no matter how many times he will try to tempt me. It seemed that I am now in for the fight of my life, a fight that will make my life for the better. My husband is my life, my daughters are my life and I have to fight this for them.

Meanwhile, as I began to fall asleep on the first of my 39 nights here, I hear a strange faint speaking sound out in the distance, almost as if it is a creature slightly growling. I think it is my imagination acting up because the smoothies weren't being consumed, but it is the sounds of the king of hell hiding from me.

"I will make sure that you continue to embrace my power," he whispers. "I will tempt you the same way I tempted your lord and savior."


	5. The First Ten Days

Chapter 5

"The First Ten Days"

Now, before I continue my story, I would like to remind you that if I went over each of the 40 days of my rehab, then I would probably bore you to the point of making you want to leave and not have the ability to listen to what I have to say. So, what I am going to tell you are the events that greatly affected me during my stay. Now, that's out of the way, so let me continue my story.

So, the first major event that affected me during my stay had happened during the fifth day of my rehab when we had one of our group sessions. One of the people to share his story was a middle aged man who was much older than me. He explained to us that he had recently lost his job and that his wife had divorced him after nearly thirty years of marriage. Once our group session was over, I wanted to speak to him in private just to get to know him a little better.

"That was a good story you spoke of," I said to him as we had dinner that night. "You must have had it rough like I have."

The man was silent for a minute as he drank a cup of coffee. I thought that he was not in a talkative mood, but as it turned out, he was.

"Thanks," he replied, putting down his coffee cup. "My priest told me to come here because he says that I needed to spend Lent, trying to hold off the Devil. Plus, my family said that I need help with my drinking. What are you in here for?"

"Because I have a drinking problem," I said, sighing heavily as I began picking at my dinner. "I'm the vice president of my husband's beeper emporium and the stress had been getting to me lately. I actually had gotten into an accident because I was driving under the influence."

"And?" asked the man. "What happened to you?"

I wanted to hide the truth, but I couldn't lie to anyone. Instead, I forced the words right out of my mouth.

"Well, I killed one person when I crashed into the side of a brick house," I replied. "Both the court appointed attorney and the judge said that if I pleaded guilty to what I have done, then I could come here to fight my addiction."

The man nodded for a moment and then took a bite of his food as he thought of what I had just said to him. I could see that he was very understood of what I had told him and this was probably the first time in my life that I had to confess to something without getting yelled at.

"I'm glad you did," replied the man, smiling slightly. "Otherwise, you wouldn't have been getting the true help you need."

He was then silent for a minute as a thought came through his mind, a thought of familiarity to him.

"Wait a minute," he said. "Did you say your husband ran a beeper emporium?"

"Yes, my husband is Robert 'Big Bob' Pataki," I replied. "I'm his wife, Miriam."

The man then grabbed my hands and shook them as I blushed slightly, knowing that mentioning my husband's name was going to give me unwanted attention.

"My name is Gary Schneider and it's an honor to be meeting the wife and vice president of the beeper king," he said, chuckling. "My family has bought many of your products over the years."

We then rose to our feet and headed into the lounge as we past other fellow patients who had the same problem as us.

"What do you do for a living, Gary?" I asked, trying to get to know him a little better.

"I am the vice president of a company that makes sensors," he replied as we sat down on a sofa. "I've been to mostly Asia and Europe where our products are purchased. It's been a long 30 years with them. What is your role as Vice President in the Beeper Emporium?"

"Probably the same as my husband," I replied. "Running the business when he's unavailable, making sure everything is done in a timely manner, that sort of thing. But, the pressure does get to me at times."

"Which is why you drank, I suppose?" remarked Gary. "I've let the pressure get to me and its affecting my health and my family. My daughter recently moved to Virginia with her new husband. She's a recent medical school graduate from Drexel University College of Medicine in Philadelphia."

Hearing Gary talk about his daughter moving to Virginia made me think of when Olga left us. As a matter of fact, another reason why I drink is because I miss her presence in the Pataki household.

"Do you have kids yourself?" he asked me.

"I have two daughters," I replied, scratching one of my legs. "One's a teacher in Alaska and the other is still in grade school. She goes to PS 118."

"I see," he replied, looking down for a moment. "Both my kids are out of school and my youngest is Autistic, but he gets along very well."

"Is he in school or something like that?" I asked again. "If you say he's Autistic, then he must be doing very well."

Gary sat there for a moment, thinking of what to say to me. As he thought, I couldn't help but imagine what Helga could be like with Autism. But then again, she didn't and that was the way it was.

"How do I put this into words?" he thought out loud. "He started going to college, but then the work got tough for him, so he decided to get a job as a grocery bagger. He started at Wal-Mart and then moved up to the supermarket ranks."

Hearing Gary talk about his son working as a grocery bagger got me a little emotional inside as it reminded me of when I was working at Wal-Mart, trying to prove to Bob that I could be a valued member of the workforce.

As I returned to my room that night, I couldn't help but wonder about the good times I had at Wal-Mart before it closed down. Still, it was nice to get to know someone like Gary and I hoped that there would be more where he came from.


	6. The Second Ten Days

Chapter 6

"The Second Ten Days"

Well, meeting Gary Schneider had given a sense of understanding in what being an alcoholic will do to you. Still, he was a very nice man who had a good reason to be here, even if it was voluntarily. I was here because I killed a human life, a sin against God. But, for this part of my story, there was someone who had committed a sin by breaking the law of Detox. It had happened on day 15 of my 40 day program when a young man of about early 20's broke the silence of the hospital.

"What are you doing? I need it, give it back!" the voice screamed and I got out of bed and ran to my door and opened it to see what was happening. The voice was coming from a room about two blocks down from where I am. The voice continued screaming as I saw one of the nurses take away a bottle of California wine from him.

"What's happening?" my neighbor asked me from another room. "He's acting up again or something?"

I didn't know who the individual that was screaming was, so I just shrugged my shoulders and continued to watch what was happening. Just then, the screaming stopped and the other came out with a syringe in her hand before dumping it into a sharp box outside the room. Once the chaos was over, I shut the door behind me and sighed heavily, glad that the madness was over.

"So, he's a regular around here?" I asked Gary later at breakfast. "Everyone knows who he is?"

"That's what I have been hearing from my assigned nurses," he replied. "I guess that he has been in this program several times and that he claims that the bottle is what keeps him alive. From what I hear, he could end up going to prison if he keeps this up. He was involved in a drinking and driving incident recently, which is why he came back here."

The thought of seeing this man going to prison or anyone for that matter, sent a chill up my spine. This is what could have happened to me had I not taken that guilty plea, but I am glad that it didn't happen.

"I'm wondering if someone could help him," I said, taking my medication. "Everyone deserves a chance, even the man that was screaming this morning."

"What do you think they might do to him?" remarked Gary, eating into his breakfast. "If you have been in here several times and have not made any progress, then what good will it do for you? I'm sorry, Miriam, but it would take a miracle to get him to stop."

This got me thinking and that Gary had a good point about a miracle for this poor unfortunate soul. It seemed to me that God had disowned this man and that rather than letting him suffer, I needed to meet this man and get through to him. A few days later, I was visited by Father Lawrence where he did morning mass in the cafeteria. Once mass was over, I sat down with him and told him about what had happened.

"It seems to me, Miriam, that this man you speak of is possessed by devils," he said. "It happened back in the days of our lord and Satan can work his magic in mysterious ways. It would take a miracle from Jesus to clean the devil's spirits out of him."

"Didn't you tell me a story once about how a young boy was possessed by evil spirits or something?" I remarked. "You told me that St. Peter and St. James tried to help him, but the boy was uncooperative because he couldn't sit still."

"I did," replied Father Lawrence, taking a sip of tea. "But, just because I am window of Jesus, doesn't mean that I can perform miracles. You see, when you do things like drinking and driving Miriam, it is the devil who takes control of you and everything that you love and cherish is blocked from your minds. The only way I can purge this man from the evil spirits that control him is that someone who believes in the faith must get him to understand the true meaning of what being a true Catholic is. You are a true Catholic, Miriam, so it must be you to do so."

This to me was a tall task, but I knew that something had to be done. I was always the one who was taught to embrace the faith and keep out the devil. In the past few years, I had failed to do so and allow me to be consumed by the devil by drinking smoothies and also allowing him to possess my husband and turn him into the man who thought that women don't deserve to work in the workplace. If I could break that barrier once when I first worked at Wal-Mart and later at the Beeper Emporium, then what could I do with this barrier? Still, I had some hesitations about this.

"What if I don't get through to him, Father Lawrence?" I asked, feeling slightly nervous. "Do you think he...?"

But, before I could say another word, Father Lawrence placed his hands on mine and looked at me straight in the eye.

"He will listen to you," said Father Lawrence comfortly. "I know you are a good soul, Miriam. You must not allow the devil to consume him any further than he already has. The devil will do anything to try to get people like you to stray from the path that Jesus has set for us. I know he is a good soul and that with your help, he can be saved."

It was a tall task, but I knew that it had to be done. I knew that God was going to be watching me carefully, knowing that if I fail, then I may never be forgiven for my actions that I caused that poor family as well as my own.


	7. The Third Ten Days

Chapter 7

"The Third Ten Days"

Early the next morning, I was given a fresh change of clothes so that I would no longer have to walk around in a hospital gown. Glad to be wearing regular clothes again, I decided that there was one thing to do about the screaming man I had seen yesterday and that was to talk to him. After a morning of activities to combat our desires for alcohol, I made my way to the secluded part of the war where the screaming man was taken to. Upon my arrival, I saw what appeared to be a traumatized figure of about mid 20's, no older than Olga.

"What do you want?" he asked, trying to avoid eye contact with me. "Have you come to try and break my security blanket, too?"

"No," I replied opening the door and walking over to him. "No one is here to hurt you. But, you claim that the alcohol is your security blanket and it's not."

The man simply turned away from my attention upon hearing those words. In my mind, I knew that the devil possessed him given the screaming he had made upon being dragged from his room.

"How can you say that?" asked the man, turning back to me. "Of course, it is my security blanket. Alcohol relaxes me from what the world does to me and my family. But, everybody is telling me to give me it up and I don't want to."

I could see that he was in pain from the look in his eyes. Inside, I could see the head of a creature that was red and had horns, chuckling evilly.

"I can see your pain," I said to him, continuing to look at the devil's head in his eyes. "And I know, because for many years, I thought that alcohol was my security blanket too. In fact, I ended up in here because my desire for alcohol cost someone their life."

"Then that's your problem, not mine," replied the man, getting up to his feet. "I've never killed anyone. I've hurt people several times on the road and that they all turn out fine. It's not like they've died or anything."

I could hardly believe what I was hearing coming out of this guy's mouth. I could tell that he was lying from the look on his face and that he needed to see the truth.

"Well, someone did die," I said firmly. "It was a young girl just about the same age as my youngest daughter. Did you remember ever being arrested for each time you killed someone?"

"Arrested?" remarked the man. "I've never been arrested. Often times, the police would come and bring me to the police station and I would wait for someone to come and take me home. I've never been arrested for anything in my life."

It was at this point that I needed to get through to him. Taking in a heavy sigh, I lowered my head for a moment and then looked back up at the man.

"Buddy, you need to understand something," I replied. "You were arrested and with each time you were arrested, each time your freedom was lost. It's going to keep going until you wake up and see what you've done to yourself and those around you. Now, has anything happened to you in your family that has made you want to do this?"

The man was silent for a minute and he knew that I was trying to get through to him. We could've stayed here and not gotten anywhere with this, but we were starting to reach a breakthrough.

"Well, there is one thing I cannot deny," he replied, sighing heavily. "You might say God and I have not gotten along very well. Are you married?"

"Yes," I said. "Married with two daughters, why do you ask me?"

"I was once married," he explained. "Married to the most beautiful girl I have ever seen in my entire life. But, shortly after the birth of our child, she began to feel very ill and the doctors revealed to us that she had appendix cancer. She fought bravely, but it was a lost cause and she died in my arms. I was left with the task of raising our child alone and he was growing up to be a strong young man. Then, one day, he suffered a severe fever and died a few days later. Ever since then, Alcohol has been my sanctuary and people are trying to take my comfort away."

"But, alcohol is no one's comfort," I said. "I know because I had to learn that the hard way. For many years, my husband had always said that women were only meant to stay at home and raise children while the husband went out to be the breadwinner. All I could have for a security blanket was smoothies, a drink that was destroying me instead of helping me. One day, he had hurt his back and I filled in for him at his workplace."

The man was shocked by what he was hearing and began to feel a small tear trickling down his cheek.

"I enjoyed working there so much," I continued. "That I decided to end up getting a job. Soon, I became the vice president of my husband's company and the rest…well…is history."

The man was amazed by my story and I could see that now he was beginning to realize the error of his ways, judging from the smile he had on his face.

When I returned to my room that night, I was starting to become satisfied with what I had done to this man. It was a step in the right direction, but as the time since my last smoothie continued to grow, I was starting to feel something evil coming towards me and I knew that it was the devil, angry that I was starting to lure away someone that he had control over.

Now, it appeared that he was seeking a new vessel and that someone was me…


	8. The Fourth Ten Days

Chapter 8

"The Fourth Ten Days"

In the days since I saw the man who was isolated for going bananas, I was starting to realize that everything that had been happening was all the devil's work. In my mind, I knew that there had to be a time and a place to confront him over what he had done to me and all these people. On the 37th day of my detox, my body was starting to crave for any drink that is out there. But, like my lord and master, I had to resist the devil's temptation, no matter how hard he tempted me. When I went to bed that night, I heard a strange noise that was evil and sinister.

"Forty days and still she resists," said the voice, which was male. "She has great strength indeed."

I suddenly awoke from my sleep and groggily looked around for any sign of who was in my room. Being that I was just asleep, my mind wasn't straight and I thought it was another one of those pranks that the immature patients were doing. After a few minutes, I realized that I saw a strange figure standing next to my bed with what appeared to be a skeletal hand pointing right at me.

"You need help," he said, clutching the end of my bed.

"No," I replied, thinking that this was just a dream.

"But you'll die soon," remarked the figure.

"I will not die until I have performed the will of my father," I said, weakly, trying to not give into what the devil was saying.

"Your father?" asked the devil.

"The Lord God almighty," I replied as the figure laughed evilly as I climbed out of my bed, trying to get away from him.

I knew that he was going to stop at nothing to get his way with me and I knew that this was the same figure that brainwashed people like Gary into succumbing to life's guilty pleasures.

"If you're a daughter of God," said the figure, as I tried to not pay any attention to him. "Then why does he let you suffer so?"

"I will suffer far worse than this for the sake of God's love," I replied, still trying to get my body to not respond to the devil's commands.

"Prove it to me," said the figure. "Here, now."

He then reached onto the nightstand next to my bed and picked up a glass of water that I kept next to my bed. I could tell that he was going to do what he did to Jesus.

"Take this water and turn it into wine," said the figure, handing me the glass of water. "Go on, your thirst will be satisfied. In fact, I will fall down and worship you forevermore."

"It is written," I replied, putting the glass of water down on my nightstand. "That neither man nor woman shall not live by bread and wine alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God."

I then turned back to the figure and gave him a strong glare, upon knowing who it really was that was standing next to me.

"I know who you are," I said sternly to the figure. "And you know who I am."

I then walked further away towards the door to my room, but before I could open it and walk out, I fell down and fell asleep for a few moments. When I awoke, I found myself back at the scene of my accident. At this point, I knew that I was either dreaming or acting crazy.

"Why am I back here?" I thought to myself as I saw the building and the woman that I had killed standing at the spot where I would later crash my car.

"There it is," said the devil, walking over to my side. "The woman that you will later kill, but, you can save her. It is written, that God shall command his angels to protect you and all mankind. I have a plan, stand in front of the girl and take the brunt of your accident. When the angels see you, then they will protect you both."

I considered the matter for a moment before my attention back to the devil, since I knew that this was nothing more than another round of temptation.

"You say it is written that we shall both be saved," I replied.

"It is," said the devil.

"It is also written that thou shall not tempt the lord, thy God," I said, pointing at the devil and pushing him back slightly.

Then, all of a sudden, we found ourselves on the outskirts of the city on one of the hills overlooking it. It seemed that I was now starting to get myself into the inner temptations of what this figure wanted.

"I am prepared to help you in your moment of need," he said, but I could tell that he was lying.

"It is not yours to give," I replied and this made the devil very cross.

"It is mine to give!" he cried in frustration. "It is mine! The people of this world obey my voice! For I have power…power as you've never seen!"

Suddenly, I was being shown a large tornado as the devil conjured up a small screen with a picture of the grapes of Napa Valley, California.

"Vineyards and Orchards," he said as I saw moving pictures of the people I have met drinking away on the very substance that they have tried to keep out of their lives. A look of disgust came on my face as he produce yet another moving image, this time of a gold mine.

"Gold and Silver beyond your wildest dreams," continued the devil as I saw moving pictures of people with the latest Alex and Ani bracelets or prized jewelry from Macy's.

"Palaces, Thrones, Crowns, Presidents," he said again as I was shown moving pictures of world leaders.

"Money without end, treasures and prizes," he said yet again, as he showed me pictures of people during the holiday shopping season, stopping at nothing to get what they desired.

"Kings and Queens, guns and knives," he said again, showing me pictures of events from the World Wars all the way up to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"This is power!" he finished, as the screens disappeared. "And it can be yours like all the others if you'll do this one thing…turn the water into wine and then fall down and worship me forever as your lord and master."

I was hesitant about it, trying to not let the devil win over me and I was now starting to realize that maybe this was now my biggest test in my life.

"Do as I command!" he boomed. "Fall down and worship me, the God of this world!"

Now, I was really angry and was now going to put away the monster that had plagued me and my family for the last time.

"Satan," I cried, standing up to him. "Get thee hence, for it is written, man shall worship God and him only shall thou serve."

Realizing that he was about to be beaten, the devil screamed in agony and frustration as he fell backwards and disappeared from view.

At last, I had gotten the influence that had plagued me and everyone here out of my mind…at least for now.


	9. Offering their Forgiveness

Chapter 9

"Offering their Forgiveness"

In the days that followed since my encounter with the Devil, I had come to realize just how much I had changed from someone who was dependent on drinking into someone who was against the idea completely. For the rest of my time in Detox, I had been speaking about my encounter and some believed that I was being an idiot, while others including Gary Schneider and the guy who was desperate for a drink, actually believed what I had said.

When I returned home, I decided to figure out other ways that I could cope with my stresses. Instead of smoothies, Bob and I decided to open a gym inside the Beeper Emporium for our employees to exercise and relieve themselves of their stress and burdens. It seemed to be very popular with our workers and our colleagues, but only time would tell on how it truly is.

However, I still need to face the family whose daughter I had accidentally killed by my own doing. That is where I stop my reflections and return to the present at Easter Sunday mass, where mass has ended and we have been told to go in peace by Father Lawrence.

"Mrs. Pataki," I heard a voice call me and I saw the mother of the young girl emerge from the church, walking over towards me.

"Yes?" I asked as Bob and I towards the woman and her husband. "What is it?"

"My husband and I have been thinking," she said. "We think that you deserve our forgiveness after all that has happened."

In my mind, I thought that these people were joking since it was their daughter that they lost. I had made a horrible mistake and they were forgiving me for it.

"How can you say that after what I had done to you and your family?" I remarked surprisingly as we felt a warm breeze blow through us. "Most people never forgive those who kill others that are close to them."

"I know," she said. "But Father Lawrence was strongly imposing that we forgive others that trespass against us. It got me thinking that as a good Catholic woman, I need to forgive others who have done me wrong and I know that you need to be forgiven."

There was a brief silence between us as I took in what was said to me. It then occurred to me that maybe perhaps she had somehow heard of my story about the devil trying to tempt me.

"Well, thank you," I said, smiling slightly. "I guess God wants us all to forgive one another at some point, doesn't he?"

I then brought the woman into an embrace and gave her a hug, before we said our goodbyes and Bob and I got into our car to drive over to the house, pick up Helga and head over for our Easter dinner at the country club.

"Miriam, I can't believe that woman forgives you," said Bob as we drove off. "I've made many mistakes and you never forgive me for them. So, why would she do that after losing her kid?"

"Do you think that matters, B?" I remarked. "God wants us all to forgive and let go of all our past burdens. But, we have to understand that sometimes our mistakes are worthy of being forgiven."

"But that's not the point I am making," replied Bob. "Since you've returned to work, many have been saying that you claim to have seen the devil. Why haven't you told me about it?"

Now, there was a very good reason for not telling Bob about the devil visiting me. It seemed that he would never believe anything I would say in our marriage.

"Because you wouldn't believe me," I sighed as I straightened out my cranberry skirt. "You never believe anything that I say, no matter how important it may be."

"Father Lawrence was mentioning someone at mass today having a conversation with the devil," said Bob as we neared the house. "Were you that someone, Miriam?"

I was silent for a minute, but I knew that I needed to answer my husband's question. Taking in a heavy sigh, I looked back to my husband.

"I was, B," I answered, as we drove past the scene of my accident. "He tried to tempt me into going back to my old ways. I have much at stake that I need to live for and that this was a learning experience for me."

"Of course it was," remarked Bob. "I know that I have much to live for too. I only thought that the devil only came to me to tempt me into becoming greedy and powerful. But, I can see why he would do the same to you."

"B, he can do it to anybody," I said as we pulled up to the house. "He can do it to me, he can do it to you and he can do it to Helga. Do you know why our family is dysfunctional to begin with? It's because of the fact that the devil wants us to be that way. So, he can make us do things that are against God. My actions that night were caused by his influence and I have to take responsibility for it."

Bob could see now that I was making a very decent point, but I had to say it. The devil is a bad influence and I had to tell the truth about it. When I was in pain, I only had the devil to come help me, instead of praying to my master for help. From Easter Sunday forward, I made a promise to myself that I would accept the help of God and his angels instead of the Devil and his demons.

However, I also taught myself that I can warn others about his works and the events of recent have given me the spark to do so. I can prevent others from experiencing the same fate as me and I know that from whatever happens from here on in…

…God would protect me.


End file.
